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Association football Facts for Kids

Association football

Association football is a sport, played between two teams. In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, it is called football, but in other countries, such as the United States and Canada, it is called soccer. In Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, South Africa, and Japan, both words are often used.

Each team has 11 players on the field. One of these players is the goalkeeper, and the other ten are known as "outfield players." The game is played by kicking a ball into the opponent's goal. A match has 90 minutes of play, with a break of 15 minutes in the middle. The break in the middle is called half-time.

There are many competitions for football, for both football clubs and countries. Football clubs usually play other teams in their own country, with a few exceptions. Cardiff City F.C. and Swansea City F.C from Wales for example, play in the English leagues and in the English FA Cup.

Groups such as UEFA and FIFA organise international competitions between clubs and countries. Clubs play in competitions such as UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League, and countries play for the World Cup or a continental trophy such as the UEFA European Football Championship.

The FIFA World Cup takes place every four years between national teams, and is the world's most popular sporting event, even more popular than the Olympic Games. [1] In football, there are two main types of competitions. In a "league", all of the teams play the same number of games, but in a "cup", teams leave the competition when they lose, until the last two teams play each other to decide the winner.

Football is the world's most popular sport. It is played in more countries than any other game. In fact, FIFA (the Federation Internationale de Football Association) has more members than the United Nations. It is played by both males and females.

In Europe, the main competitions to compete to be the best in Europe are the Champions League for the top teams from the top leagues in each country in Europe. Then there is UEFA Europa League which is for the next best teams from each member of the UEFA.

The fallout from Ireland’s bruising loss to New Zealand at the weekend continues and now a shocking statistic has surfaced which suggests the All Blacks may be given favourable treatment by match officials.

Following their loss to Ireland in Chicago’s Soldier Field back on November 5th, the expected backlash from New Zealand was swift and brutal.

Scoring a try in the first couple of minutes and then a relentless onslaught from the world champions saw Ireland’s mettle tested. The Ireland of old would have wilted under such formidable aggression from the All Blacks.

No longer fearful of the marauding visitors however, Ireland held firm and it was only through a supreme effort of skill and physicality that the All Blacks overcame the home side.

Or was it? It that all it was or was there something else?

Since the game ended there has been an ongoing argument that the physicality employed by New Zealand on Saturday was not only excessive, but also dangerous. On review of the game, rugby’s citing commission have seen fit to cite both Sam Cane and Malakai Fekitoa for what appear to be dangerous high tackles on Robbie Henshaw and Simon Zebo, respectively.

While Fekitoa was sent to the sin bin for his swinging arm on Zebo, Cane’s challenge on Henshaw was deemed a mere penalty. On review of the tapes, one might argue that both challenges deserved marching orders, unless you were a New Zealander of course.

Now, as reported on the Irish Times’ Second Captains radio show, Matt Williams has revealed a startling statistic regarding the All Blacks and their receipt of yellow cards.

Check it out from the 21st minute for the background and 25th minute for Williams’ comments.

Williams revealed that when compared to Australia and South Africa, the penalty to yellow card ratios are incredibly skewed in favour of the world’s top side.

On average, South Africa have received a yellow card for every 11 penalties conceded. For Australia it is every 12 penalties. However, for New Zealand, a yellow card is brandished on average only once every 43 penalties.

Whatever way you cut it, this is truly astounding. It has long been known that the All Blacks play close to the edge. They know where the limits are and they know how and when they can overstep. All good sides do. However, to be penalised 43 times before a card is brandished is simply phenomenal.

Proponents for the New Zealanders style of play will argue now that this statistic is debunked since there were two cards issued to the All Blacks on Saturday. Viewing this game in isolation would support this claim, however, when you zoom out and see that they are almost four times less likely to be sin binned than their southern hemisphere peers, certain uncomfortable questions arise.

Rugby is a tough sport, one of high intensity and crunching impacts. No side is exempt from foul play or a rush of blood to the head. Comparing the statistics here however, can anyone out there legitimately refute the arguments of favourtism and bias to the mighty All Blacks?

Gary Brennan, Pundit Arena

Heineken Rugby Club celebrates and rewards real supporters who make the game what it is.

He was ordered to do 80 hours of unpaid work and a rehabilitation activity for 15 days and pay his victim £300 in compensation as well as £185 court costs and a £115 victim surcharge.

Kimberley attacked Mr Ward moments after the final whistle of the match on October 1.

He was knocked unconscious from the headbutt - and needed medical treatment for a gash on his nose.

In a statement read in court, Mr Ward said: "I could see the man come towards me, and his head moved towards my eyebrow.

"The next thing, I woke up on the floor bleeding from the bridge of my nose.

"It has left me feeling gutted. It was just a game of football.

"It wasn't even a bad-tempered game. I may not referee again in the future."

Chair of the magistrates, Vanessa Marvell, said: "We have considered this carefully, and we do find that this was so serious that it has to have a custodial sentence, but we are going to suspend that sentence.

"This was serious because you used your head as a weapon to cause injury, and it was an unprovoked attack on someone who was carrying out their duties as a football referee."

Prosecutor Jez Newsome said: "The victim was the referee of a game on Sunday October 1, in which the defendant was issued two yellow cards, which resulted in a red card.

"At the end of the game Mr Ward was trying to explain it to the team manager, and Mr Kimberley approached them, talking to the referee about the repercussions of the red card."

Other witnesses then saw Mr Ward lying on the ground, drifting in and out of consciousness.

Mr Newsome said that when Kimberley was arrested later that day and interviewed, he made a full admission to what he described as "a moment of madness," but claimed he felt the ref was laughing and winding him up.

He said he had not meant to cause the injury, and he suggested the ref had "moved his arm and I thought he was going to hit me" - which was rejected by the prosecution.

Mr Newsome said: "He says the victim has a reputation as being a wind-up who is known to provoke players.

"The Crown in no way accept that.

"This is a referee who gives up his time at weekends to enable people to play on a football field."

Paul O'Keeffe, defending, said: "He described it as a moment of madness, and that he should not have done it.

"Mr Kimberley accepts his action was completely unwarranted, and out of proportion to anything that happened at the time.

"He didn't wish to cause injury."

South Florida Bulls Football - Statistics and Rankings, Statistics Rankings

South Florida Bulls Football - Statistics and Rankings

Statistics and Rankings

The Bulls received their first ever pre-season Top 25 ranking on August 1, 2007 when they and head coach Jim Leavitt were ranked #21 in the Coaches Poll.

USF has won every home opener in school history (11-0).

Bill Gramatica holds the record for the longest field goal in school history at 63 yards.

USF plays in the largest stadium (65,657), the stadium with the largest student section (12,501) and has the largest enrollment (44,038) of any school in the Big East.

USF was ranked for the first time exactly 10 years and 10 days after its inaugural game against Kentucky Wesleyan in 1997.

USF rose at an unprecedented pace, earning an APranking 104 polls after becoming a full-time, bowl eligible FBS member in 2001. Boise State had the previous record, getting ranked after 115 AP polls during their seventh season.

USF became the fastest team in the modern era of college football to go from upstart NCAA FBS school to a top-10 ranking on Sunday, Sept. 30. There were 106 AP polls and 112 Coaches Polls since USF became a full-time FBS member in 2001.

The same can be said about the top-5 ranking, which took USF 107 weeks to achieve.

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